Torsion and semi-degeneracy of second-order maximally superintegrable systems

Abstract

The isotropic harmonic oscillator and the Kepler-Coulomb system are pivotal models in the Sciences. They are two examples of second-order (maximally) superintegrable (Hamiltonian) systems. These systems are classified in dimension two. A partial classification exists in dimension three. In this paper, our focus is on second-order superintegrable systems with a $(n+1)$-parameter potential with $n\geq3$. We find that these systems are underpinned by an information-geometric structure, namely the structure of a statistical manifold with torsion. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for such systems to extend to non-degenerate systems, i.e. to admit a maximal family of compatible potentials. The condition is geometric: we show that a $(n+1)$-parameter potential is the restriction of a non-degenerate potential if and only if a certain trace-free tensor field vanishes. We interpret this condition as the requirement that a certain affine connection has vectorial torsion. We also show that the condition for a system to be extendable is conformally invariant, allowing us to extend our results to second-order conformally superintegrable systems with a $(n+1)$-parameter potential.